JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - A federal appeals court has upheld the more than 14-year sentence George Coe Jr. received for his role in a telemarketing scam case in Mississippi.

Coe was sentenced in 2011 after pleading guilty in U.S. District Court to conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

Prosecutors say the scam targeted senior citizens around the country, telling them they had won cash prizes but had to pay taxes and fees to claim the money.

Prosecutors say the scam netted tens of thousands of dollars from victims in California, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, New Hampshire and Vermont. Some of the money made its way to Mississippi.

A three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied Coe's claims that his sentence was unreasonable.

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